Kids, Cartoons & the Occult

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

Thirteen years ago, my kids and I moved into a rental house after my ex-wife and I separated. The landlord informed me that my children (8, 10, 12 at the time) could paint their walls any way they wished--just so it was covered when we moved. One day I came home and my eldest had some friends over who were signing their names on the wall. It looked pretty cool to me...especially with all the flourishes here and there connected with some of the signatures.Perhaps you may be questioning the wisdom of my actions--all I can say is that they were hurting (as was I) and at the moment it seemed okay

Fast forward a few months, and the deputy with the Sheriff's Dept.exiting my house looked at me as if I was some moron for allowing "gang graffiti" to be plastered on my daughter's wall. It turns out that some of her friends were into the "blood" and "crip" mega-gangs, but I was totally in the dark as to the significance of the "creative expression" I had allowed. It was a horribly difficult time for my family, and I had not been discerning enough. If only I had recognized the significance of these symbols, I could have protected my daughter from the thuggish peer pressure she came under, which caused her (and the whole family) much anguish.

Similarly, many kids' TV  programs or cartoons, have the signature of Satan written all over them--but like me, most parents are blissfully unaware of the danger. Many even approve of the shows because of their intelligence and creativity. They have not been trained by their pastors to know what to look for. I dearly want to save parents from the anguish...to equip you to know what to look for, without being legalistic or reactionary to everything that expresses imagination.

With Christmas coming, If you were to tour the aisle of any toy store, the occult is ubiquitous....and the same holds true in children's TV programming. In the past, I have not addressed children's issues much, but I need to.

Let me state at the outset that imagination is one of God's most wonderful gifts to us as His image bearers. So, I do not wince at every funny looking creature on animated cartoons. However,what I saw, and heard, on the Legend of Korra on Nickelodeon the other day was truly expressive of a hellish, demonic, and New Age-ish worldview, being thrust upon our unsuspecting and non-discerning kids/parents. I hope that by analyzing it, then it will give you the tools to analyze/discern other kids shows.

The Legend of Korra has been hailed as a critical and commercial success. In 2012 it had the highest number of viewers, and  Scott Thill stated that it "is the smartest cartoon on TV."  It has been praised for how it deals with difficult sociopolitical issues--like social unrest and terrorism.The reason I chose "Legend.." is because it's intelligence and impressive animation (Japanese), expands its appeal to a large age span. From 7--17 (at least) young folks are drawn to this show like bees to honey.

Remember, worldviews are formed by watching such shows.

Set in a fictional universe, some people can manipulate/bend either fire, earth, water, or air.Only the Avatar can bend all four elements, as well as maintain peace and balance in the world. There are four kingdoms which express one of these four elements, and the Avatar cyclically reincarnates  in each of the four kingdoms. Korra, the current Avatar, is a 17-year-old young woman from the Southern Water Tribe. She has the spunk and all the issues that come with being 17 that enhance her appeal and make her "totally awesome."

Without going into the whole plot--there are 52 episodes planned for this year--let me mention some occultic principles that I picked up on in watching just one episode.

1. Avatars --rooted in Hindu mythology, the meaning of the word avatar is "the descent of a deity to the earth in an incarnate form or some manifest shape...the incarnation of a god or wise person who possess psychic powers to defeat their enemies. In New Age thinking, Jesus is usually thought of being just one of many avatars that have visited us.
2. Portal--Korra decides to keep the portal between the human and spirit realm open so that they (we) can co-exist and learn from each other. Being able to open and close this other dimensional door--and encouraging contact between respective residents-- was particularly disturbing to me.
3. Spirit guides-- are seen as benevolent spirit creatures who guide humans when they enter the spirit realm. Looked like flying puppy dogs....
4. Earth, air, fire, and water are the 4 elements which comprise reality and are subject to human and spirit manipulation. In the paranormal community there is much discussion of "elementals"...an alleged form of spirit force/entity, usually connected with nature.Wicca, witchcraft, and other occult systems often appeal to these four elements in their incantations or rituals, which are nature focused.
5. Cosmic consciousness or collective unconsciousness-- was mentioned in the show as the Ultimate Reality which all things participate in (do you see the intelligence level?!) This notion was popularized by Freud's successor, Carl Jung, who espoused occultic beliefs. Tapping into this source will empower avatar and us....usually via mind-emptying meditation.
6. Dualism or yin/yang --in this episode, mention was made that neither light nor dark, good or bad, could be banished forever...both are equally ultimate.
7. Reincarnation--Korra is yet another reincarnation of the avatar.
8. Spirit communication--spirit realm is populated by a multiplicity of good and bad, positive and negative beings....which humans can communicate with.
9. Harmonic convergence-- (again, see what I mean re intelligence level?)...explicitly mentioned in show, where the animation "showed" the earth reaching this new evolutionary advance in which energies are set in balance, "so that a New Age is evolved."

Gone is the majestic, holy Creator.....gone is a definitive defeat of evil, sin, and Satan on the cross......gone is the distinction between Creator and His creation.....gone are all seven aspects of a biblical worldview. This is a thoroughgoing, comprehensive pagan worldview served up in animated wonderment  for our children to feast on the beast....all in the comfort of home.

The Legend of Korra is an intelligent and visually stimulating TV cartoon that is destroying our young people. It has become an integral part of the spiritual pandemic of fascination with the paranormal. In a sense, it is worse than the ghost-hunting shows because it is: specifically targeting the most defenseless (our children); and it presents a "total pagan package", as every aspect of a biblical worldview is blatantly denied and it's pagan antithesis is affirmed. And all of this in a very appealing presentation/medium.

Let me remind you that there is no such thing as an "innocent interest in the occult", even if it is not acted out in behavior. From my observation, our country has become so overrun with demonized darkness, that mere fascination MAY cause one to become demonically oppressed. You no longer have to trek into the jungles of Africa to experience wholesale spiritual darkness. Just in my lifetime, we have cast off the common grace spiritual restraints (which made overt demonic activity rare),  and are rushing headlong into the abyss--which has caused overt demonic activity to explode.

Please do not allow the tyranny of the urgent to crowd out the massively important...the protection of our children and grandchildren. God knows the "me generation" has done enough damage already. That you are reading this, is a sign that you care. Please let us all lovingly communicate this danger in the spheres in which God has placed us.

ps...as a voluntary "homework assignment", please take a pad of paper and write vertically the seven components of a biblical worldview. Then pray and get comfy, and watch one of these cartoons. Be on the lookout for comments or images that indicate what their reply would be to all 7 questions of a worldview, and compare it with the biblical worldview.
(ultimate reality?, nature of reality?, what makes us human?, nature of history, source/nature of ethics? purpose of life?, afterlife?)

The Nature of God and the Greatest Question of All

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

"For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Cor. 5:21)

I have been accenting the paramount importance of the doctrine of God in our worldviews...how it effects everything. How we view Ultimate Reality has a domino effect on the other six worldview issues. There are several worldviews in our culture, but the one gaining ascendancy is New Age or Neo-gnostic/occult, which we will look at perhaps next time. Obviously, the concept of Ultimate Reality in this pagan goddess spirituality differs significantly from biblical Christianity.

Let me briefly show how the primacy of what God is like effects the other issues, and then I want too camp on what is the most important issue of all--how can I be saved?

1. Ultimate Reality in the bible is the infinite personal God who is really there, and who has spoken to us Person to person in the bible. God is good--meaning He is holy and loving.
2. Since God is both infinite and Personal He took great delight in creating the heavens and the earth, the visible and invisible. (Gen. 1:1; Col. 1:16)
3. Since God is personal, He loves us and desires to be our primary love...He does not leave it to guesswork as to what our purpose in life is--it is stated in His communication to us.
4. The text above speaks of Jesus' sinlessness. Since God is really THERE, and spoken truth to us, we have an adequate basis for ethics. "Be holy because I am holy". (1 Peter 1:16)
5. God is infinite and personal and He made us finite and personal--that is, IN HIS IMAGE. Again, no guesswork as to what humans ARE, because of who God IS! (Gen.1:26ff)
6. We spoke of the three Lordship attributes of God last time (control, authority, and presence) This assures us that the flow of history (and our own personal history) is moving in a meaningful, linear fashion to it's culmination in the Second Coming/restoration. History is the stage upon which God is driving the drama of redemption.
7. The afterlife is, yet again, not a matter of speculation because God/heaven is really THERE. "For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ...",   "...it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgement." The moment we die we appear before the Lord's throne, and are sent to heaven or hell for all eternity. (2 Cor. 5:!0; Heb. 9:27) The greatest argument against the notion of trapped spirits is the nature of God (and His perfect atonement). His nature will also reveal in technicolor how we MUST be saved and enter His perfectly holy heaven.

Do you see how the existence and nature of God effects EVERYTHING? If we had the time, I would like to show how Ultimate Reality as energy/matter would "answer" these worldview questions. We would see that it, and all non-biblical worldviews, are utterly bankrupt to provide adequate answers to our deepest questions.

But what of the greatest question of all: how can I know I am going to heaven after death? Though it is not listed as a worldview component, it underlies and is implied in all of seven components--especially the nature of God. Once again, when we ponder our eternal destiny, the nature of what Ultimate Reality is will guide our thinking. For example, in the history of humanity there are three basic answers to that question. Though details may vary in a multitude of ways, we can accurately summarize three basic views of salvation--which (not surprisingly!) flow from one's view of Ultimate Reality. Let's look at these now.

1. Auto-soterism or self-salvation...otherwise known as Pelagianism (named after the heresiarch, Pelagius). Whether New Age, humanism, atheism, deism or theological liberalism (and scores of others), we either save ourselves by being good or we essentially "save ourselves" by denying that we even need salvation. The details vary from one belief to the next in auto-soterism (e.g. annihilation vs continued conscious existence), but the defining feature is that we don't need a Savior....we will earn or merit our way to our next incarnation or heaven. Perhaps the most common view of salvation is, "Justification by death alone." All we have to do is die, and we fly off to paradise.

The only way one can subscribe to Pelagianism is by having a seriously defective or deficient view of God's nature. Theological liberalism often states that the essence of Christianity is" living the Sermon on the Mount". Hmmm.....I wonder if they have ever carefully read this lofty sermon by Jesus? There is a spiritual logic to the beatitudes, which are the heart of the Sermon on the Mount, and the first is, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. 5:3) That is, blessed (well being in one's relationship with God) are those who recognize they are desperately in need of divine grace and mercy, for they are spiritually bankrupt in themselves. A deficient view of God's holiness will lead to a deficient view of our true spiritual condition. In other words, self-salvation is the noxious fruit of having a distorted view of Ultimate Reality in our worldviews.

2. Semi-pelagianism or Arminianism (named after Jacob Arminius) is a half-way house between self-salvation and salvation by grace alone. Stated another way--we are saved by faith in Christ plus.... (fill in the blank). My intent is not to offend anyone, but to state things accurately and urge us to think (Berean style). I was raised in a devout Christian home, but the gospel was, "We are saved by faith in Jesus, plus doing certain things...but if you do other certain sins, that will kill the grace of God in your soul. You will lose your state of salvation until you do x, y, and z." I am intentionally being vague. However, regarding the view itself--we are saved by faith in Christ AND good work/s-I will NOT be vague. As Paul said to the "Arminians" of his day, "As we have said before, so now I say again:If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." (Gal. 1:9-10) The heresy Paul was eternally condemning to hell was the notion that we are saved by faith in Christ plus being circumcised. That was the Galatian heresy which so agitated Paul and the Lord.

There always has been, and always will be, differences amongst Christians this side of heaven. However, the essence of the gospel must be protected, regardless of what people say. The folks in Galatia were not pelagianists, or believers in self-salvation. However, they did add to the finished work of Christ on the cross by saying,"In order to be saved, you must believe in Christ and be circumcised." Today, that same sort of belief is alive and well in America, and globally. Only the Lord knows the true state of a person's soul and many folks raised in these traditions are truly born again, but it must be due to some happy inconsistency. Only the Lord knows when the line is crossed in practice--all I can do is state the biblical principle, for which I do not care what man thinks. What I plead for you to consider is that many professing Christians--either because they hold to a "easy-believism" or a version of faith plus works heresy--are not really saved and will spend eternit y in hell. That grieves me...and it certainly grieves the Lord.

The issue again is the nature of God. If we have depth view of God's holiness, then we will have a depth view of our sinfullness. With a deep awareness of our radical corruption comes a vision of the glorious beauty of grace. A deep appreciation of God's utter, burning holiness will reveal the utter futility and madness of adding anything to the finished work of Christ on the cross. A person on this faith and works treadmill can never enjoy (if they are consistent) an abiding joyful assurance of salvation. There will always be the insecurity of, "Did I do enough, or did I do TOO much sin today..did I get kicked out of God's family?" Listen, I lived this way  growing up and it was horrible, even as a child.

The third way of salvation is the biblical way...the true way of salvation. GRACE. We are saved by faith alone in the finished work of Christ on the cross. (Romans 3 & 4;Eph. 2:8-10...Gen--Rev) "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it s the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." I included v. 10 because it is often left out when these verses are quoted and it addresses a significant issue--what is the role of works, if we are saved by grace alone? Concern regarding "cheap grace" or easy believism is valid, but is no reason to throw the "grace baby" out with the dirty water. Luther re-discovered the pure gospel in 1517 after it had languished under severe legalism for 1, 000 years or more. He put it this way, "We are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone." The book of James is about the evidence of true faith. Good works have no meritorious value but they have immense evidential value. As the text in Ephesians states, we were saved in order to be pleasing to the Lord.

This is not a systematic theology, so I need to wrap up. We come finally, again, to Ultimate Reality--the nature of the biblical God--which reveals the sovereign grace of God Almighty. All this talk of worldviews is foolish and empty if we ourselves are not reconciled with our Creator. 2 Cor 5:21 is one of the most important verses in all of Scripture  for understanding the meaning of the atonement and justification. The sinless Son of God became a substitute for us...substitutionary atonement. We are justified by faith alone. To say that are saved by faith or grace alone is to say we are saved by Christ alone (and His finished work on the cross) Justification involves a double transfer. Christ became sin "for us"--and was punished "for us"--but His 33 years of righteous living (the righteousness of God) is imputed or counted to us as well. It pleased the Father to transfer our sins to Jesus, and to transfer Jesus' perfect life to us. We are declared eternally "Not Guilt y!" and the Father sees us "IN HIM".

The only way we can stand before the holy Father is due the robe of righteousness wrapped around us. Though it may not make sense to the world, we must be saved by grace alone because of how absolutely just, holy and righteous God is. Every sin is an act of cosmic treason against a thrice holy God and deserves eternal punishment. However, since we are in union with Jesus' life, death, resurrection, and ascension..God not only accepts us, He absolutely delights in us! (Isaiah 62:3-5) He delights and rejoices over us...may we relish this, and dance for joy because salvation is of the Lord....from beginning to end. For all eternity we will sing the praises of the King of Grace! Amen.

The Foundation of a Biblical Worldview

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

Last time we asked the question: is it possible to access the mind of God? We noted that the beautifully staggering truth is "yes, we can"--that is precisely what the bible is...God revealing some of His mind to us. I wonder, as bible-believing Christians, if we sufficiently appreciate the astonishing wonderment of God speaking to us...revealing His mind to us? As we shall see, this self-disclosure of God provides the foundation for everything--certainly everything pertaining to our worldview.

A provisional definition of a worldview is best conveyed like this: to see with a biblical worldview is to see all of reality through God's eyes...to see it as He does. Or we could put it like this: a worldview is how we view God and the universe, and our relationship to both. I suppose if there is one thing unique about my book, it is that it teaches about the nature and importance of worldviews. Worldviews are like spectacles through which we view the world, and it effects how we think, feel, and behave. We almost always hold them unconsciously, unless we systematically discuss them as we are now. This is not secret knowledge, like gnosticism/occult, but it is rare, even among pastors, to know how to think with a full-orbed biblical worldview

In my book I list what I consider the seven components of any worldview...

1. What is the nature of God or ultimate reality?

2. What is your purpose in life?

3. What is the nature of reality?

4. Is history going anywhere?

5. What is the basis for morality?

6. What does it mean to be human (essential traits of being human)?

7. What happens to us after we die?

Let me ask three questions: do you see how utterly basic these questions are...how divergent the answers would be depending upon whom we asked...and how seriously impoverished and "lost" one's life would be if they lacked certitude regarding them? Sometimes stating a thing negatively can have some shock value which is conducive to learning...like this. "I have no clue as to what God is like...no idea why I should get out of bed because I have no clear purpose...I think reality is all in my head...morality is whatever feels right to me....humans are just apes with little hair...we are annihilated when we die...I think..."  Get my point??!!

Before I proceed any further, I believe that one of the best ways we learn is just by doing. So, the next time you read a novel, go to an art gallery, watch a TV program or movie, and so on, please ask yourself how they/it are "answering" each of the above seven questions. Obviously, the movie director is not going to have one of his cast say, "Hey, this is the worldview of this film...god is energy, pleasure is our purpose...and so on...!" It takes listening carefully to dialogue, and other factors, to pick up the explicit or implicit expressions of the seven worldview components. That is, put into practice the habit of viewing everything through a biblical worldview.   But that involves being able to spot the distortions in one's worldview spectacles,as they are presented on the silver screen or in the novel, ect...After awhile it becomes second nature. We need to develop a distinctively Christian mind if wish to have a substantive impact on our culture (Rom 12:1-2)

I want to introduce a philosophical term--epistemology--a branch of philosophy which deals with the validity, nature, and extent of human knowledge. Put another way--it deals with how we know, and how we know we know..Christians should know this term because it lies at the heart of what ails our country We are not experiencing a generation gap, but instead we are experiencing an epistemological gap (which at root is spiritual in nature). Which has led to what some call "culture wars"Let me explain.

One-hundred years ago there was a basically Christian ethos in our country.. If you were to ask the average person off the street any/all of the seven questions above, most would have given an answer that was roughly based on the bible. If someone disagreed with them in conversation, it was understood that one of them was wrong...or both were. Today the responses to the above questions would be all over the map, leaning heavily toward New Age/neo-gnostic beliefs. And to even gently assert that someone is wrong is taken as an offense...absolute truth lies bleeding in the street. Yes, it is an epistemological gap. How we acquire knowledge regarding basic issues has radically changed.

The seven questions above, which comprise one's worldview, are either answered by God's revelation or man's autonomous speculation. These differing presuppositions lead to radically differing conclusions..as we shall see. Is it not instructive that the first temptation was epistemological in nature? Says Satan/serpant, "C'mon Eve, use your autonomous mind to determine right and wrong...and you'll also discover that YOU are the real god....be a big girl and THINK FOR YOURSELF." How we gain knowledge is the key to everything...we either fear God and attain true knowledge of reality or we trust in ourselves and distort reality.

Where do you go to answer these questions? What is your final court of appeal in answering life's most basic questions? Do you look inward...to your intuition...your experience...what your heart says--or do you look outside of yourself to the Living God who created heaven and earth, who in His kindness and love, has spoken true-truth to us in His written Word?

Let's go to Psalm 119 to get just a glimpse into what the biblical worldview is. Our epistemic assumption is that we can access the mind of God, and this is done via His special revelation in the bible. ALL knowledge, certainly all the knowledge pertaining to the seven questions above, can only be answered by accessing the mind of God--because we are incapable of ascertaining the answers autonomously...

Please read these verses carefully, and in light of these basic questions. As a philosophy major, it was a beautifully stimulating experience to see the basic questions philosophers had been asking for millennia, and how the bible fit like hand-in-glove in answering them!

"Oh how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day." (119:97)

"I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts." (vv. 99-100)

"Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."(v. 105)

"How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your Word." (v.9)

"I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not Your commandments from me." (V.19)

"Righteous are You, O Lord, and right are Your rules." (v. 137)

"The sum of Your Word is truth, and every one of Your righteous rules endures forever. (v.160)

"Your hands have made me and fashioned me; give me understanding that that I may learn Your commandments." (v. 73)

"Forever, O Lord, Your Word is firmly fixed in the heavens. Your faithfulness endures to all generations; You have established the earth, and it stands fast. By Your appointment they stand this day, for all things are Your servants." (vvs. 89-91)

Please forgive my repetition, but these concepts are new to some, and they are vitally important for us to understand (for a whole slew of reasons) Epistemology accents the wonderment of having God's personal revelation to us--explaining who He is....who we are....the nature of the universe--and our relationship to both. Using just Psalm 119 let us give a brief review of a biblical worldview.

1. What is the nature of God or ultimate reality? (119: 89-91, 137) The word used for God throughout the psalm is LORD....which is Yahweh in the OT--this is the covenant Name of God. He is infinite/personal God who created the heavens and earth...all creation is His servant. Energy is not ultimate reality.

2. What is our purpose in life? Frankly, had Yahweh not revealed this to us, our lives would be utterly meaningless. (v.97) speaks of loving the bible of God, and the God of the bible..the Great Commandment is our noble purpose as redeemed humans. (v.73) God Himself made and fashioned us...we are not cosmic accidents or descendants of monkeys. And of course Jesus Himself declares that loving God is the greatest commandment. Think of all the alternatives we have come up with to replace loving God as our purpose (or dominant life value, as some put it)...as Calvin said, we are idol factories.

3. What is the nature of reality? It is not an illusion. Matter/energy is not eternal.

(v.89-91) Again, we see that there is a distinction between the Creator and His creation. There are two basic types of reality--the self existent and eternal Creator, and His creation which He created ex nihilo. The physical world is not the full circumference of reality--there is an unseen, spiritual dimension as well. I finally saw The Conjuring movie last night--about Ed and Lorraine Warren who were pioneer demonologists. The movie did a surprisingly good job of expressing the reality of supernatural evil.

4. Where is history going? LORD...Yahweh is the faithful God of the covenants--the flow of history (including your personal history) has meaning because history is His-story. The whole psalm points to a God who will hold us accountable for our thoughts, words, and deeds. (v. 19) that we are sojourners here, means that we are preparing to go home! Eastern thought tends to see history as moving in endless, meaningless cycles..NO!

5. What is the basis for morality...or how do we distinguish right from wrong? (v 9, 137, 160) A young person can discover right and wrong by meditating on God's word, which is entirely truthful. Because God is righteous, His laws are righteous..forever. We know that right and wrong are based on the unchanging character of God, as expressed in his written Word. If energy is ultimate reality, then there is no adequate basis for morality. Or if we base it on anything other than God's Word, then it is not a sufficient basis for morality.

6. What does it mean to be human (essential traits)?  v.73 God made us and fashioned us in the womb ( see Ps. 139--fearfully and wonderfully made!) Human beings are not self-referential...As John Calvin said, knowledge of ourselves and knowledge of God are inextricably bound together in a thousand different ways, since we are made in His image. We are certainly not animals or glorified monkeys. We are noble, but we are sinners as well.

7. What happens when we die? Again, we are called "sojourners on earth" (v. 19) We are just passing through this time/place before we enter our eternal rest. We are a body/soul composite, and when we die our soul immediately goes before the Holy Judge of heaven and earth. Death is determinitive of our eternal destiny--either eternity in heaven or hell. At the Last Judgment we will be reunited with our glorified bodies. Hence, any notion of "trapped souls" is repugnant to scripture and to God's holy character. Ed and Lorraine Warren got this issue wrong--unfortunately. Annihilation is also wrong-headed.

(89-91, 99-100,160) All of this discussion would be for naught if it were not for the truth of these verses.The infinite and personal God of the everlasting covenant is really there, and He has not remained silent. His Word is true truth (forever His Word is fixed in heaven) Every one of His righteous rules endures forever. Amen!

Have you ever heard someone say, "I have 35 years researching the paranormal."? I certainly have, and it is often (not always) used as a fact to buttress the force of their argument against what I or someone else has said that contradicted a claim of theirs. Here the psalmist states that he has more true knowledge than his teachers BECAUSE it is grounded in the granite of revealed truth, and not in the shifting sands of man's autonomous speculation.

I have mentioned this example before but it bears repeating: an unbelieving friend of mine, who specializes in getting rid of spirits who are hostile (and they stay busy all year), loudly proclaims two things: they have nearly 40 years of experience, and they have never, ever seen a demon! This is usually followed by a sarcastic, withering criticism of those who stupidly believe that all ghosts are demons. This person is my friend and it grieves me that they are so blind that they cannot even recognize demons when they are attacking or harassing them. Every classic criteria used to determine demonic presence has been met many times over, and yet they still refuse to see reality clearly...tragic, but quite common.If our worldview glasses are distorting our perception of reality, then decades of experience will only make one more foolish in their understanding of the world.

There are no answers to the seven questions above if our epistemology is not grounded in the Word of God. That is, if we do not look to God's revelation to learn what: God is like, the nature of reality, our purpose in life, what is right and wrong...and so on, then we have no adequate foundation for acquiring any knowledge. This may not be exciting, but please know that this is bedrock foundation for building a biblical worldview...reason for getting out of bed and not committing suicide. I am baffled by this optimism which is grounded in a worldview in which impersonal energy is Ultimate reality....that kind of optimism has both feet planted firmly in mid-air.    

Each question is SO basic...if only one is wrong or even partially distorted, it will seriously impact ones life. Yet the majority of people in the world have all of them (seven questions above) partially or totally wrong! Why? Because their epistemology is wrong. This is not rocket science...we either humbly look to God to answer life's most basic questions, or we pridefully look to ourselves...revelation or speculation. We DO have access to the mind of God through the Holy Bible--and that is the foundation of a biblical worldview! Please do try to watch and read with these questions in mind this week...

P.S I still need someone to help revamp my website...please! Thank you...   mark                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Christians Quit Satire

By Stephen Piersall

Breaking News

Satan is telling all in his kingdom that thanks to the media, they have established a stronghold within humanity. More TV shows, movies, books, magazines, and events across the world are promoting sinful ways of life. More people have stopped going to their local churches altogether. Many Pastors are going away from the teachings of the Bible and inserting their own beliefs, interpretations, and taking scores of people with them, as the Bible foretells. As a result, we now have more people sinning by dabbling with; ghost hunting, Wicca, Occult, earth-bound spirits, purgatory, Mediums and Psychics, etc. Spiritual Warfare is ongoing, and we are winning the battle with little effort. The human race is falling because of pride and ignorance. What a bunch of numbskulls! Let us prove it to you.

Pray to God

Christians really believe they can please “God.” Since the victory of getting humanity to sin at the Garden of Eden, man has been born into a sinful nature. Jesus came to make them a new creation, if they only just believed in “Him.” They are incapable of getting “right with God”! “The Galatian fascination,” where now they are right with God. They feel they have to keep up a certain standard to please Him. It is as if trying to please everyone, which we know, is impossible. To please one group of people you are invariably going to displease another group! They need to resign themselves to the fact Christianity is not a popularity contest. Ultimately, they just have to follow God’s voice, walk in the truth, and live a life of discernment of the Holy Spirit.


Funny too, how Spiritual Warfare exists; they think they can cause a change. These humans are always seeking the easy way out; ghost hunting, seeing psychics, after the occult and witchcraft. Some of these knuckleheads actually believe that going to a person’s home and doing a cleansing gets rid of us evil spirits. Ignorance is bliss and rampant across the globe. Why would anybody think that doing a Blessing would cleanse a home when the family has no religion, and willingly partakes of sins and wants to continue to live life that way? Why anyone would want to quit; Smoking, drugs, alcohol, unforgiveness, lust, sex sins, etc? That is just crazy, who doesn’t like to have their cake and eat it too? We have them so fooled that they have established homosexual Pastors, marriage laws that promote same-sex health benefits, and even killing babies through abortion.

Our sinful nature

Did you know that God does not want them to try to do what is right and avoid what is wrong? Just knowing the difference and for them to make their own decisions and try to be Christ like. God only wanted Adam and Eve to live well in relationship with Him, which is the same for today. That fellow Paul, who was a great example for us when he was Saul wrote in Romans 7 where he explains his problem of knowing what is good and bad and feeling he should try to live, based upon that!

It is also comical to watch humans pray with no confidence. “If it be your will” is the ultimate cop-out! Their Bible says his will is that things on Earth would be as they are in Heaven. If they do not know his will, ask God! After all, he is not looking to give them permission to exercise his will but to show it.

Prayer is talking with God

Have you ever noticed how people rate their sins? Clearly, the Bible does not rate sins as better as or worse than one another does. Why is it that so-called Christians are willing to walk down the street with signs to show how much “God hates gay people” and yet there are no Christians picketing restaurants because (some) people in, there are being gluttonous? Why are they not out on the corners, helping the homeless, praying for healing for the sick? This way society sees them as “Violent Christians,” and nobody will want salvation. Therefore, more souls will be taking the elevator downward.

Satan's influence

They have some great family value’s reality TV shows too. Most women are dressed provocatively, showing off expensive jewelry, fighting, and cursing with each other. Same goes with the televangelist shows where pastors living a lifestyle of the rich and famous. Even when the camera pans around the congregation, notice all the people having all their gold jewelry out and wearing expensive clothes, trying to be better than the next one. Talk about your fake Holy Rollers!

It seems casual for them to feel good about themselves when they look around their immediate circle of influence, maybe knowing the Bible better than their friends have. If they shed their pride, it would be carefree for them to feel bad. Maybe put down the picket signs, look around, and see a church in the next town over and notice how full their parking lot is and how many people leave a church with love and happiness in their hearts. Getting into comparison is never healthy, neither guilt nor pride is great places to go! Instead, let them just compare to one person. Jesus!

How does your life measure up to the life of Jesus? Can we truly say, “It’s no longer I who live but Christ in me”?

Evangelist Stephen PiersallGod's Preservation Ministry Salvation, Deliverance, Healing, and counseling Ministries
http://sfprs.org/https://twitter.com/GodsPrsrvtnMinihttps://www.facebook.com/GodsPreservationMinistry

The Truths about Christians and Ghost Hunting

By Stephen Piersall, 
God's Preservation Ministry, http://sfprs.org/ 

I am submitting this blog I found in my archives and wanted to share it with you. I know you hear a few of us talking bad about ghost (demon) hunting all the time and many do not agree with us, even though we have Biblical proof of being correct. This is another person's point of few and I hope it at least plants a seed of hope that if you do not have Jesus as your LORD and Savior or are a Christian but have backslidden and adapted to the worldly views that it will open your minds and make you rethink your views.

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By Shane Raynor

If you aren't familiar with the phenomenon of ghost hunting, you haven't surfed through your basic cable channel lineup in a few years. Yes, the medium that brought you Jersey Shore and Honey Boo Boo also promotes the paranormal each week with shows like Ghost Hunters, Ghost Adventures, and The Haunted. Be afraid, be very afraid.

I generally take reality shows with a grain of salt, but ghost hunters, also known as paranormal investigators, aren't limited to television. Groups and societies that specialize in investigating paranormal claims are popping up all over the world. There’s probably at least one of them in your city. Some even claim to be Christian-based.

Ghost hunters use technology and fringe science as they attempt to prove or disprove alleged hauntings of houses and other locations. Some also use occult methods and they bring in psychics, mediums, and channelers to assist with their investigations. I’m guessing that real-life ghost hunting is nowhere near as fast-paced and exciting as the reality shows depict it to be. That's because in the real world, there’s no one to edit out all the boring stuff. And some ghost hunters get more than they signed up for. I've heard accounts of people experiencing demonic oppression and/or possession after taking part in paranormal investigations. Stirring up trouble in the spiritual realm is never something that should be taken lightly.

That brings us to the question of whether Christians should even be involved in paranormal research and investigations. Before I attempt to answer that, I’ll go out on a limb and say that some of what we see on paranormal reality shows is probably hokum. A portion of the “evidence” they uncover is likely exaggerated, and some of it could even be manufactured. Some shows are probably more trustworthy than others, but none of them can survive without ratings, and it’s hard to get ratings if something exciting isn't happening on screen.

But assuming that some paranormal events and phenomena are real (and I do), how should Christians respond to it? It depends. I don't think it’s a good idea to go ghost hunting in places like cemeteries or abandoned buildings for the adventure of it. But a Christian’s purpose is connected to the purpose of Jesus Christ: to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8). So when there's a situation where someone is being tormented or harassed by a evil entity , I believe Christians have the authority to step in and confront it. For example, if a family is dealing with paranormal activity in their house, and they need help getting rid of it, then that’s fair game. But there’s always some degree of risk when you confront evil, especially if you don't know exactly what you're doing. If you do get involved in any kind of ministry that deals directly with evil, be prepared to pray and learn as much as you can about spiritual warfare.

Some of the methods paranormal investigators use are dangerous. Christians should not be collaborating with psychics or other occult practitioners. And attempting to communicate with the dead in any way, especially to get information or satisfy curiosity should be avoided. Leviticus 19:31 is fairly plain: "Do not resort to dead spirits or inquire of spirits of divination—you will be made unclean by them; I am the Lord your God" (CEB). Deuteronomy 18:10-12 puts it this way:

There must not be anyone among you who passes his son or daughter through fire; who practices divination, is a sign reader, fortune-teller, sorcerer, or spell caster; who converses with ghosts or spirits or communicates with the dead. All who do these things are detestable to the Lord! (Deuteronomy 18:10-12 CEB) There are good reasons for these warnings, one being that attempts to consult the dead could open the door to powerful demonic activity.

Ghost hunters often use technological tools to help them with their investigations, but some of these methods seem to me to be little more than high tech séances and Ouija boards. EVP (electronic voice phenomena) recorders, ghost/spirit boxes (modified radios that allegedly can be manipulated by spirits), and electronic speech synthesis devices like the Ovilus should be avoided by Christians. EMF (electromagnetic field) meters probably aren't an issue, provided they aren't used to gain information from spirits.

There may be a place for Christians in the world of paranormal investigation, but no one should get involved just for the thrill of it. Many of us will likely encounter the supernatural, both good and evil, at various points in our lives, but our fascination with it should be grounded in who we are in Christ. In Luke 10, Jesus had this to say to the 72 followers he’d sent out who came back with their minds blown because demons had actually submitted to them:

I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Look, I have given you authority to crush snakes and scorpions underfoot. I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will harm you. Nevertheless, don't rejoice because the spirits submit to you. Rejoice instead that your names are written in heaven (Luke 10:18-20 CEB).

The spiritual war between good and evil is real, but getting actively involved with it just for the thrill factor or the entertainment value is never a good idea.

What Are Poltergeists?

By Reverend Mark Hunnemann

If you walk into a house and see a book fly across the room, what would be the first words out of your mouth(other than SC-startled cuss!)? Somebody will probably blurt out, "Hey, poltergeist activity!" It has become fashionable for paranormal investigators to speak of any paranormal activity of this kind as poltergeist, even if they are not referring to the actual poltergeist phenomenon. Yes it has become confusing. For example, they might think the activity actually stems from trapped spirits, but ANY activity that is forceful and loud is categorized as poltergeist. But what I want to examine is the theory of poltergeists as PK (psychokinesis) or TK (telekinesis). Here are the four main types of paranormal activity: intelligent haunt, residual haunt, poltergeist, and demonic. It is my firm conviction that the first three in this list are actually demonic in nature--and especially for our purposes, the accounts of genuine poltergeist activity are most certainly a demonic infestation.

"Poltergeist" is from the German meaning noisy ghost. It is important that we define our terms clearly, and this nowhere more important than when discussing this alleged phenomenon. There are different theories as to the nature of this activity, but the generally accepted theory (in parapsychology) is that a troubled pre-teen or teen, who also is sensitive to the supernatural, may unwittingly cause paranormal activity via PK or TK...especially during times of high stress.One writer refers to five stages of poltergeist activity, but it boils down to gradation between mild to deadly. Despite the wide range of possible poltergeist activity, there is one main constant--the activity is not caused by a trapped spirit, but by strangely powerful psycho-kinetic power., which is unconsciously released by a troubled teen....usually a female. It is similar to a residual haunt in this respect: both are non-intelligent phenomena.  

Tracing the history of this notion is not easy because of  divergent definitions of  poltergeist activity (see above). However, it is clear that the notion of poltergeists has undergone a complete identity change. Up till the mid 19th century poltergeist activity was widely thought to be the result of witchcraft or demonic activity. However, in the last hundred years or so--corresponding to the ascendancy of psychology as well prevalence of occult practices--the origin of poltergeist activity shifted away from the demonic and to our alleged innate psychical powers. With the loss of a Christian consensus and worldview, New Age/occult theory and practice as well as psychological categories becoming ensconced in our culture, have downplayed the demonic. Both of these (occult worldview and psychology) contributed to the evolution of the identity of poltergeists as an interior psychic force and not an exterior intelligent force. (ie demon). This is an example of how we are destined to move further and further from reality and truth when we jettison the biblical worldview.   
                                                                                                   
I want to shift gears and critique what we have said thus far. It does not help matters when inexplicably large numbers of people reflexively shout "poltergeist!" when anything forceful happens...or even simply discernible. 

1. The notion of poltergeists as the unconscious workings of a troubled teen is cruel...especially if it is not true (and it is not). Do we realize the true psychological damage that this theory can cause? Talk about kicking a woman when she is down (generally female teen)--a frightened 14 year old girl/young woman, who is herself being scratched, is told that she is the cause of all the horribly destructive things that are happening to her family. It makes no difference how sincere and lovingly this may be believed and presented to the affected teen, it saddles them with enormous guilt--and no way of correcting the problem. With the demonic already assaulting her in a multitude of ways, the teen may see suicide as the only means of escape for her and her family. Self-destruction plays right into the demons intent. The more emotionally sensitive the person is, the more they are apt to suffer horribly by this miserable "diagnosis from hell". It is little comfort to tell them that the activity is unconscious, because in their mind it is still coming from them--it is their fault her dad broke his arm when pushed down the steps. It is all her fault that the family is unravelling. The cruelty may be unintentional but it is cruel nonetheless. I have three children and the thought of someone saddling them with this diagnosis gets my blood boiling. 

2. There is no evidence that we have this kind of PK abilities, unless you assume the very thing you are trying to prove. There has been extensive research done at Duke and elsewhere and a variable never considered is that when PK occurs it is demonically caused. Nobody has been able to reproduce in the lab what occurs in millions of homes, to various degrees. In allegedly severe poltergeist activity, chairs can fly and tables levitate....and knives fly directly at people. Can that be reproduced in the lab? Nope--so why are we being irresponsible and applying an unproven theory with utter certainty to teenagers?

3. There are unmistakable signs of intelligence in the attacks-- but this theory is wholly incapable of accounting for this. How can non-intelligent psychic energy target someone and throw them down the steps...or throw objects AT THEM? There is discernible intent to harm...how can impersonal psychic energy display intent? Once again, this theory involves attributing personal or human traits to impersonal energy. 

4. This unmistakable appearance of intelligence renders this theory as intellectually bankrupt. The only reasonable cause behind such intelligent attacks is the presence of demonic entities. Let me ask this: what criteria does one use to distinguish between poltergeist activity and demonic activity? If demons can mimic anything...if they have intelligence and power, then they can account for every case of alleged poltergeist activity....and do so without emotionally harming someone in the process. The mere presence of a teen in the infested house is enough for many investigators to start their poltergeist wheels turning--God help any oppressed family if they have teens and certain kinds of activity (which differ from person to person) are occurring. If the main reason one attributes this activity to poltergeist is that there is a troubled teen in the picture, then this is circular reasoning. Cannot demons attack a family that has troubled teens in it? To conclude this section, EVERY CASE IN WHICH TRUE PARANORMAL ACTIVITY WAS DIAGNOSED AS POLTERGEIST, IS REALLY DEMONIC IN NATURE..And if you mid-diagnose the problem, then the proposed cure will be way off base as well. 

Like R H, the theory of poltergeist has been repeated so often that folks just assume it is true.  In addition, there seems to be very little self-reflection regarding this theory. In wiser times this notion would never have found a sane audience. This is where the power, for good or ill, of worldview spectacles is seen. The biblical worldview, which has the true God as ultimate reality, has been displaced by an energy-centric worldview. This has provided fertile ground for non-biblical theories like poltergeist to flourish. We have a soul, but nowhere in the bible are we said to have psychic abilities.waiting for us to tap.

The way folks determine that a haunt is poltergeist in nature is disturbingly subjective. What one investigator determines is poltergeist, the next will likely call it an intelligent haunt that is very active. And since there is no way to PROVE that the teen is the cause, it becomes a guessing game...only the stakes are enormously high.

As with residual haunt and aliens, it is instructive how rebuking/cleansing in the name of Jesus will cause poltergeist activity to cease--often with signs of demonic capitulation. Merely psychic powers, like r h, should not respond to this...but in every case I have been involved in, they have fled.

Again, as with r h, Satan knows a good thing when it sees it.It (Satan) has a vested interest in keeping the theories of r h and poltergeist alive and well--and will do everything to make them appear plausible...even temporarily vacating a house after occult cleansing has been done. Satan has both means and motive to commit this crime...and in my judgment, the theory of poltergeists is a crime against humanity.